Which Fast-Food Chain Has The Best Chicken Nuggets? (2024)

FAQs

Which fast food chain has the healthiest chicken nuggets? ›

"Chick-fil-A's Grilled Nuggets are one of the best fast-food options out there," shares Marisela Gomez Raffo, RDN, LDN. "High in protein and low in fat and carbohydrates, they are grilled instead of fried, which reduces the overall amount of fat compared to most other fast food chicken nuggets," she adds.

The Perdue nuggets were my favorite, but it was a close race, with Kirkwood's chicken bites coming in second. Though the flavorful Kirkwood nuggets came in a close second, nothing could top Perdue's juicy chicken bites, which had high-quality meat and texture.

#1 Wendy's

They have an overall better flavor with a more robust mixture of spices in the meat and breading, while still tasting like real white meat chicken. Plus, they are the crispiest amongst this group of nuggets, unlike the McNugget that can sometimes seem undercooked.

There you have it, folks; if you want something as good as the Chicken McNugget but from the comfort of your own kitchen, look for the Pilgrim's brand. Haracz says the knockoff chicken nuggets are sold at Walmart, which is true, but you have to know what to look for.

A small order (4-piece) of Chicken McNuggets is a healthier option than your traditional hamburger, as chicken is a naturally leaner meat than red meat due to fewer calories and fat. Although McDonald's doesn't offer a grilled version, this meal is all about proper portioning.

A closer look at Chick-fil-A's nutrition facts reveals that a serving of eight grilled nuggets contains just 140 calories and is a good source of protein at 23 grams, certainly making it one of the healthier options at a fast food restaurant (as long as you resist the temptation to add a side of fries).

TikTok says these are 'the best frozen chicken nuggets'

According to TikTok, Costco's chicken nuggets taste the exact same as the nuggets at Chick-fil-A. Costco's frozen chicken nuggets, Just Bare Lightly Breaded Chicken Chunks, went viral after fans posted TikTok clips comparing them to the famous Chick-fil-A nuggets.

So while McNuggets are "made with 100 percent USDA Grade A chicken," as McDonalds.com states (note it says “made with” not “made of,” Ochner pointed out), there's no way of knowing what percentage of the whole nugget is actually chicken.

McDonald's Chicken McNuggets® are made with all white meat chicken and no artificial colors, flavors or preservatives. The chicken, which is cut from the tenderloin, breast and rib, gets mixed with a marinade for flavor and to help the Chicken McNuggets® keep their fun shapes.

The meat in McDonald's has much better texture though. Instead of being completely ground meat, it has chunks of chicken that are pressed together. Wendy's chicken meat has a more processed spongy feel to it. As simply a vehicle for sauce, Wendy's wins handedly.

What makes Wendy's better than McDonald's? ›

Wendy's foods are made with better ingredients and have less fat and sodium than McDonald's. Pricing is another factor that makes going to Wendy's better than going to McDonald's. Wendy's has the 4 for 4 deal which comes with 4 nuggets, fries, a burger of your choosing and a drink.

The chicken is ground into a coarse ground chicken mixture. It's coarser than the ground chicken that you find at the grocery store, which gives the McNugget its thick, meaty texture. Then, the ground chicken is mixed with marination ingredients, which are all publicly available on the McDonald's site.

10 Piece Chicken Nuggets: Chicken Nugget (Chicken Breast With Rib Meat, Water, Sodium Phosphates, Salt.

Since 1985 Ingham's NZ has been supplying all of our McDonald's chicken. Thirty Waikato farms supply all the 100% pure chicken breast that goes to Te Aroha or Auckland to become McChicken patties and McNuggets. Nothing is added to McNugget chicken except a crispy Tempura coating and seasoning.

Perdue. Perdue's chicken tenders barely beat Tyson with my taste testers. Like Tyson, they were crunchy with a heavy focus on breading. This was a win for my self-proclaimed “breaded meat connoisseurs” involved in the testing.

Description and origin. The Chicken McNugget is a small piece of processed chicken meat that is fried in batter and flash-frozen at a central manufacturing facility, then shipped out and sold at McDonald's restaurants.

Additionally, Chick-fil-A uses real, whole chicken breasts that are not separated or ground—unlike some other fast-food restaurants whose chicken products are made from multiple sections of the chicken ground together. Each piece of chicken is hand cut before being marinated and breaded.